It had only been a few minutes in which Mark's interrogation had lasted. It was mostly about how Alice operated, how she thinks, and ultimately how she'd attempt to come for Mel and potentially Hope. But it was Hope's okay that got the others to back down from questioning Mark's very real relation to Melori.

While Mel was left alone to think on her ultimate decision, Hope, Davina, and Ric gathered the rest of the team to deliver the information they gathered. Alice was always careful to not share too much personal information to anyone— not even Mark— so it was difficult for Mark to give any details. But what he had was enough for them to prepare for any upcoming attacks.

As Davina concluded the last of what happened in rescuing Mel (since they were sent home when Alaric found them), everyone was baffled. Absolutely stunned, annoyed, and surprised that one; a Malivore incarnate is walking, talking, and breathing, planning to kill one such hybrid. And two; said hybrid's previously dead brother is currently sitting in the cold dungeons beneath them.

"As if this couldn't get any more complicated," MG groaned.

"Bringing someone back from the dead... how much black magic is that?" Raf asked.

Ric sighed, "a lot. Which means this Alice character must have some pretty powerful friends— or hostages— to help her."

"I don't get it," Josie shook her head. "If Mark couldn't become a tribrid, what use did he have to Alice?"

"Somehow Mark was able to retain his witch powers post vampire transformation. Making him a siphoner witch that could draw magic from his vampire side if he has enough energy," Hope explained. "And being that kind of hybrid... he has a lot."

"Enough to even block a tribrid's location spell," Lizzie mumbled, slowly understanding it all.

MG scratched at the back of his neck, sitting atop one of the tables in the cafeteria where they gathered. "So... what do we do now? If Melori actually is a tribrid... and if she decides to drink blood, complete the transition... what are we gonna do?"

"Simple," Davina said with a shrug. "We be there for her. We make sure she stays herself and doesn't do anything that would compromise that."

"Same goes for if she's still just a hybrid," Hope agreed. "She's... worried about not being able to control the hunger. Either way this goes, we just need to be there for support."

The group nodded in agreement before someone opened the doors to the cafeteria. It was Jack, looking worried and determined to find something.

"Has anyone seen Mel? We were supposed to have study group with some friends... I haven't seen or heard from her since after school yesterday."

A small, yet very uncomfortable lump formed in Hope's throat. It dawned on her that she hasn't even thought to speak to Melori's other friends about what happened. And they deserved to be in the loop just as much as everyone else in the room.

Jack noticed the grim looks on everyone's faces. She began to ask questions, but Hope quickly cut her off. "I think... you should come with me."

Jack was at a loss for words, but still followed Hope, as well as Lizzie and Josie who decided to join as well. They wanted to check in on the girl, but also offer comfort for both Mel and Jack.

As the girls were rounding the corner to Hope's room, they could hear soft, melodic cords coming from beyond the door down the hall. Hope figured Melori finally noticed her guitar sitting in the room. However, the music she was playing stopped abruptly as the girls reached the door.

Hope opened it carefully and found that Mel was on her bed with her guitar, already watching them intensely. Hungrily. Her attention was quickly turned to Jack as she began to fully enter the room.

"Don't!" Mel barked. The four of them jumped back a bit, frightened at Melori's accidental hostility, and once Mel realized how much it scared them, she instantly felt regret. "Sorry, I'm sorry. I just— no one should come in here."

"Can someone please tell me what's happening?"

"What are you doing here, Jack?"

"Looking for you! You missed study group with me, Remy and Kamila."

Mel winced. "Oh, that... I'm sorry, Jack, it's... Something happened."

"Yeah, no shit. Everyone looked at me like how my moms did when they told me my dog died when I was six. And I sense the barrier spell clearly designed to keep you inside." Jack shook her head, pursing her hips in expectation. "So who's gonna tell me what this is about?"

Mel lowered her head slightly and planted her guitar to the side. The twins looked at each other before looking at Hope with the same expectancy that Jack had.

Hope glared at them briefly, then placed a hand on Jack's shoulder. "It's a slightly long story, but... end result of it is that Melori's in transition."

"Trans...?" Jack squinted her eyes at Hope, and not long after, she realized exactly what she meant. She looked back at Melori with so much worry that one would think her head would fall off. "How? When did this happen?!"

"She was taken yesterday, held captive overnight and some time early this morning, I'm guessing... her captors killed her to activate her vampire side," Josie explained softly.

"Now I'm staying in here by my lonesome until I make a decision. To somewhat live, or to die." Melori groaned slightly, swallowing a lump in her throat. "That also means I'm very, very hungry, and I don't doubt I could hurt someone to satisfy it. So I asked Hope to spell me in." She picked her guitar back up and positioned it comfortably on her thigh. "It protects my morals... and any living creature in the vicinity."

Jack sunk against the doorframe. "I'm still lost. Why would anyone purposely trigger your vampire gene?"

"Remember that reaper?" Hope asked, and Jack nodded. "It was sent by Malivore to kill us both because our blood is toxic to him. It could kill him once and for all. But now—"

"To top that, we have someone else wanting to kill us to destroy Malivore," Mel continued.

"Which means activating the vampire gene so that instead of just seriously hurting Malivore, we kill it."

Melori sighed heavily and started plucking at guitar string. It did good calming her hunger for the past hour. Hopefully it helps now when there's fresh, warm blood standing at the door. Though admittedly, that hope is very limited.

"If you don't mind, I need to be able to think without hearing the blood pumping in your veins."

Hope nodded briefly before escorting the rest of them away from the room, closing the door behind them.

"I can't believe any of you."

Josie tilted her head to the side. "What do you mean?"

"I mean we all know what Mel's decision will be. We all know she'll choose to die."

Hope shook her head. "No. You're wrong, she'll choose to stay with us, okay? We're just giving her the time she needs—"

"To die. You're allowing her to let the clock run out until eventually, she's gone. For good." Jack scoffed, eyeing Hope with unexpected disappointment. "You're supposed to be the one that knows her best. Yet, you failed to see she's on a suicide mission. So when you're ready to admit your mistake and do something about this... come find me."

Jack left without a second glance, leaving Hope and the twins in the hallway, all at a loss for words. Eventually Hope excused herself as well.

Was Melori really planning to die?

---

Eventually Hope returned to the room after going on a long walk to clear her mind. What Jack said got to her, making her really question Mel's true intentions. With another two hours lost, and with Mel still not coming forth to say she wants the blood, Hope feared more than anything that Jack was right.

Mel hopped up from her bed and moved to the furthest corner of the room. "What the hell are you doing in here?! I told you—"

"Yeah, I don't care anymore. Be honest, this 'time' you asked for to 'think,'" Hope said with air quotes, "was that just a ploy to get me to leave you alone? So you can wait it out?"

"Princess, I—"

"Don't fucking lie to me, Collins. Were you or were you not waiting to die?"

Mel went stiff, holding unwavering eye contact with the girl on the other side of the room. She wanted to answer honestly, but also didn't want to disappoint Hope. However, the silence told Hope everything she needed to know.

"Unbelievable."

"Just hear me out—"

"Oh, I'd love to hear this one."

Mel sighed heavily and ran a hand through her hair. She motioned for Hope to sit on her bed while Mel sat at the windowsill. "Yes, my absolute first option was to die, but I promise you I was genuinely taking the time to consider the other option."

"Why would you want to? You'd be leaving so much behind!"

"Because I don't want to risk becoming something that compromises who I am."

Hope shook her head. "What about your brother? You just got him back and, what, you're just gonna leave him like that?"

"Hope."

"And what about Marcel? Aunt Freya, Aunt Davina— me?"

"This isn't easy for me, damn it! Either way this goes, I lose some of the most important things to me. Either way, I'm dead."

"But only one way is where I... we don't lose you forever." Hope stood from Mel's bed and started to walk closer. "It's selfish, yes. But what's also selfish is for you to not consider how much we need you. Not just with Malivore but in general. You're a good person, a good teammate, a damn good friend, and now you have a second chance at being be best sister. You can't just give that up and I can't let another person I love very deeply just...leave. Not when there's so much here for you."

Melori remained silent, averting all eye contact. When Hope realized she wasn't getting anything else out of Mel, she turned to walk out the room. Melori watched from the window, holding back the urge to chew Hope out for dropping the L-bomb on her. It was best to just let her leave.

Hope stormed dow the halls of the school, all the way to the kitchen. Opening the fridge designated for blood for the vampires, she found that it was literally empty. The last of the blood bags from earlier were gone, even the one Hope put back to save for Mel.

"Of all the times to run out of blood, this has to be the worst," she thought aloud. She didn't notice Lizzie had entered the kitchen until the point where she slammed the refrigerator door, finding the blonde standing behind it with something behind her back.

"Is it time?"

"What?"

Lizzie rolled her eyes. "Don't play dumb with me. Are we force feeding Mel or not?"

"Sure, whatever. I just need blood and we're out of it."

"I know." Lizzie smiled as she held out a small cup. "So we're gonna give her yours."

"Why mine?"

"Duh, Hope. You heal, I don't. C'mere, give me your hand."

Hope didn't protest any further, moving to the counter where Lizzie grabbed a knife. Hope held her hand over the cup and allowed Lizzie to cut her. She sat the knife down and watched Hope squeeze enough blood to fill half of the cup.

"Let's go save our friend, shall we?"

Hope nodded briefly and followed Lizzie out of the kitchen after grabbing the cup of her own blood. No one was really interested in what they had going on. Even though Hope literally is carrying a glass cup of blood. Anyone normal would see this and question everything. But everyone was used to these things and didn't care. The only one that did care was Jack as she and Hope held a mutual, knowing gaze, and Jack was quick to drop everything to join them.

"So we're doing this, then."

"Yes," Hope confirmed. "She may hate us... actually, she may hate me but at least she'll be alive."

"Of course, she'll have to be on suicide watch," Lizzie said. "Anyone can take a stake and stab themselves. Or rip out their own heart if they've got the balls. So—"

"Leave that to me, then."

Lizzie was the fist to reach the room. It was a good thing in Hope's opinion because of the three girls, she'd have been the one to hesitate. Lizzie, on the other hand, did not.

She burst into the room, interrupting Mel's nap as she somehow managed to even fall asleep. She was immediately able to recognize the smell of the crimson liquid sitting comfortably in the cup.

Jack closed the door behind them and locked it. Not that Mel could possibly escape. The more useful purpose is to keep people out. Just in case.

The second thing Melori noticed was the dried blood on Hope's hand. "You cannot be serious."

"There are two ways this can happen, Bennett Wolf; you can either drink Hope's blood willingly, or we shove that shit down your throat."

"You're in on this too, Jack?"

Jack shrugged, "if it's the only way you don't waste your life away."

"But—"

"Drink the blood, Melori. It's the only way we're leaving this room"

"No, Hope! I'm not ready."

"Mel, I told you I won't risk losing you. You will drink this blood one way or the other."

"Screw that. Screw you."

"You can do that after you complete the transition," Lizzie smirked. "And not while Jack and I are here, of course."

Melori shook her head, still stubborn and unwilling to change her mind. "I won't do it, not like this."

"Lori..."

"Hope, don't make me do it."

"I want you to drink the blood, now."

Mel groaned loudly, clenching her jaw, trying her damnedest to not give in. She wanted nothing more than to spend more time truly considering her options. Yes, she has more to lose if she died, but the thought of being a vampire, risking that chance of hurting the people she cares about is far greater a risk. But seeing Hope here begging her to not give up so easily... it changes everything. It makes it hard to resist the temptation. So why bother trying anymore?

Melori took the blood and downed the substance quickly. It tasted sweeter than it smelled, more giving than she could ever have imagined it to be. One subconscious concern that comes with drinking this particular blood is that it was Hope's, and already it might be the best thing she'll ever have.

She pushed the cup back into Hope's hands and wiped the runaway blood off her lips.

"H-how do you feel...?" Hope asked warily.

Mel's eyebrows furrowed a little as she searched for an appropriate response. "I... don't know if that's really what I wanted but... um..." Melori looked back down at the glass as it had some remaining drops of Hope's blood in it.

Hope and the others watched as the veins beneath her eyes began to show, as well as her irises becoming that of her wolf's. She's a true hybrid now, and it shows.

Mel gave them a sideways smile as she placed her hands behind her back.

"Everything's just fine, Princess."

HI. IM LATE, IM SORRY

I was supposed to update WEEKS ago. buuuut, I've been sleeping in the time I have between school hours, so I haven't been able to do very much writing.

I don't think I've mentioned before that I have a nurse aide college class I started this semester, and... homies, it's exhausting. the tests we have to do every once in a while? those are hard. I failed four of them straight up because I couldn't remember the order in which I had to do the steps of handling seizures and shit. the way it works is that you either make a 100, or a 0... so yay 😁

it's fine, though? I still have an A- ... by some freaking miracle.

but it's stressful, and it takes a lot of my energy, if not all of it. and I'm trying not to fail anything else so I can land this nursing assistant internship.

that being said, I'm very sorry I'm late. I'm very sorry I'll be late again (as I am behind on writing as well). and I will try to find the energy to tippy tap on my phone, spreading these fanfic ideas into the world for you guys :)

danke bury much for the 22-fucking-k reads?! like, that's a big number homies 😳

ok bye, I no take your time up anymore. thank you again!